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I haven't found a great place (price wise) to buy. I just buy from Apple Store. After you buy a certain amount in a year, you can start to get discounts if you register as a business with them.

The LARGE majority of the company is still running boxes about 4 years old on Windows XP.

So now that security support for Windows XP is going away you'll be upgrading all of those users to Windows 8? What an awesome project!

Also why would I go buy a Mac with OSX and Parallels or Bootcamp and a copy of Windows. Why not just buy a PC with Windows and cut out the expensive middle man.

I run a MACBookPro with Fusion because I need to be able to develop/program applications for both environments (PC and MAC). So your answer is, you wouldn't unless you have a business need to do so. For some users, a MAC will have all the functionality they need without Fusion or Parallels (these are the two practical choices for PC emulation on a MAC). If these users are new hires who are more likely to already know the MAC environment, then you should consider it. In a business environment, most business applications are still PC based so it's much harder to justify MACs (until the CEO buys himself one which has happened at my clients). MACs in a very large environment (like you have) are somewhat problematic when the IT department wants to maintain them, lock them down, and control updates. That's something that is a little easier in the PC environment but it is still doable in the MAC environment.

For a home user who needs email, browsing, and Office, either environment will work fine. It's strictly personal preference. For what's it worth, I'm the President of a Microsoft Certified Partner but when my wife needs a new computer I'll be replacing her PC laptop with a MAC (although her iPad really does almost everything she has a need to do).

The two environments can coexist on the same network (even on the same machine). Buy the hammer that's the right one to get the job done but chances are either hammer will get the nail where it needs to be. It's mostly personal preference with no right or wrong answer.

After 29 years switched to Mac. Mac can also be a PC. PC can't be a Mac. You get best of both worlds with a Mac. It took a while to get used to but easier to figure out than Windows 8. So far no compatibility issues with Office.

They're just different kinds of hammers that will both drive the nail once you know how to use them.